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Stay With Me: Chanel (Raven Bowens) and Abe (James Reynolds) are overwhelmed at the prospect of losing Paulina (Jackée Harry).
The end draws near for Paulina as her condition worsens, and her loved ones face the fact that she might not survive.
While Lani and Chanel break down over the thought of losing their mother, Paulina asks for some time alone with Abe. “Abe begs her to not give up,” previews Jackée Harry (Paulina). But his words aren’t as inspiring as he’d likely hoped. Reports Harry, “She’s like, ‘You can’t even remember me in this life, so why should I stay alive for you?’ ”
Abe doesn’t miss a beat, immediately answering Paulina’s question in an impassioned fashion. “He has a heart-to-heart with her,” recounts Harry. “He tells Paulina that he loves her even though he has amnesia. She knows that he loves her for the woman she is, as the man he is in that moment. They don’t have to go so far back in memory.”
Harry found the scenes sweet — and completely plausible, since at their core, Paulina and Abe are still the same people who originally fell in love. “It really felt real,” says Harry, noting that her relationship with James Reynolds (Abe) infused the emotional moment. “Jim is one of the best people and so wonderful to work with. He really is, thank God. I don’t take it for granted either, because it’s important. I can work with anybody, but it’s nice when you have a great rapport and you trust [the other actor]. I trust Abe, and I trust Jim, which makes [our connection] really strong. It was instant. No buildup. Nothing. And it’s endured.”
Paulina’s conversation with Abe provides the impetus she needs to gather her strength and charge forward. “She knows right then and there what she has to do: She has to fight,” declares Harry.
However, things take an unexpected turn, when Paulina is suddenly bathed in a warm light. “Paulina thinks she’s going on to heaven; she thinks she’s going to the pearly gates,” says Harry. But is there another explanation for the sudden glow in the room?
